The Johari Window

The Johari Window sounds somewhat esoteric until you learn that it was
devised by two men called Joseph and Harry. Despite this quaint naming it is,
in fact, a very useful way of understanding something of how our self may be
divided into four parts that we and others may or may not see.

The Basic Johari Window

Below is a diagram of the standard Johari Window, showing the four different
selves and how the awareness or otherwise of these aspects of our self by
others and by us leads to these four categories.

What you see in me

What you do not see in
me

What I see in me

The Public
Self

The
Private (or hidden) Self

What I do not see in me

The Blind
Self

The
Undiscovered Self

The Public Self

The Public Self is the part of ourselves that we are happy to share with
others and discuss openly. Thus you and I both see and can talk openly about
this 'me' and gain a common view of who I am in this element.

the Private Self

There are often parts of our selves that are too private to share with
others. We hide these away and refuse to discuss them with other people or even
expose them in any way.

Private elements may be embarrassing or shameful in some way. They may also
be fearful or seek to avoid being discussed for reasons of vulnerability.

Between the public and private selves, there are partly private, partly
public aspects of our selves that we are prepared to share only with trusted others.

The Blind Self

We often assume that the public and private selves are all that we are.
However, the views that others have of us may be different from those we have of
ourselves. For example a person who considers themself as intelligent may be
viewed as an arrogant and socially ignorant by others.

Our blind selves may remain blind because others will not discuss this part
of us for a range of reasons. Perhaps they realize that we would be unable to
accept what they see. Perhaps they have tried to discuss this and we have been
so blind that we assume their views are invalid. They may also withhold this
information as it gives them power over us.

The Undiscovered Self

Finally, the fourth self is one which neither us or nor other people see.
This undiscovered self may include both good and bad things that may remain
forever undiscovered or may one day be discovered, entering the private, blind
or maybe even public selves.

Between the Blind and Undiscovered selves are partly hidden selves that only
some people see. Psychologists and those who are more empathic, for example, may
well see more than the average person.

Four personas

Associated with the Johari Window, we can define four different personas,
based on which 'self' is the largest for each individual.

The Open Persona

Someone with an open persona is both very self-aware (with a small blind
self) and is quite happy to expose their self to others (a small private self).

What you see in me

What you do not see in
me

What I see in me

The
Public Self

The
Private Self

What I do not see in me

The Blind
Self

The
Undiscovered Self

The Open person is usually the most 'together' and relaxed of the personas.
They are so comfortable with their self they are not ashamed or troubled with
the notion of other people seeing them are they really are.

With a small Blind Self, they make less social errors and cause less
embarrassment. They are also in a more powerful position in negotiations, where
they have less weaknesses to be exploited.

Becoming an Open Persona usually takes people much time and effort, unless
they were blessed with a wonderful childhood and grew up well-adjusted from the
beginning. It can require courage to accept others' honest views and also to
share your deeper self, plumbing the depths of the undiscovered self.

The weaker side of the Open Persona is where they understand and share
themself, but do not understand others. They may hence dump embarrassing
information from their Private Selves onto others who are not ready to accept
it.

The Naive Persona

The Naive person has a large Blind Self that others can see. They thus may
make significant social gaffes and not even realize what they have done or how
others see them. They hide little about themselves and are typically considered
as harmless by others, who either treat them in kind and perhaps patronizing
ways (that go unnoticed) or take unkind advantage of their naivety.

What you see in me

What you do not see in
me

What I see in me

The Public
Self

The
Private Self

What I do not see in me

The Blind
Self

The
Undiscovered Self

The Naive Persona may also be something of a bull in a china shop, for
example using aggression without realizing the damage that it does, and can thus
be disliked or feared. They may also wear their heart on their sleeves and lack
the emotional intelligence to see how others see them.

The Secret Persona

When a person has a large Private Self, they may appear distant and secretive
to others. They talk little about themselves and may spend a significant amount
of time ensconced in their own private world. In conversations they say little
and, as a result, may not pay a great deal of attention to others.

What you see in me

What you do not see in
me

What I see in me

The Public
Self

The
Private Self

What I do not see in me

The Blind
Self

The
Undiscovered Self

Having a smaller Blind Self (often because they give little away), the Secret
Persona may well be aware of their introverted tendencies, but are seldom
troubled about this. Where they are troubled, their introversion is often as a
result of personal traumas that have led them to retreat from the world.

The Mysterious Persona

Sometimes people are a mystery to themselves as well as to other people. They
act in strange ways and do not notice it. They may be very solitary, yet not
introverted.

What you see in me

What you do not see in
me

What I see in me

The Public
Self

The
Private Self

What I do not see in me

The Blind
Self

The
Undiscovered Self

As the Mysterious Persona knows relatively little about themselves, they may
be of low intelligence, not being able to relate either to themselves or to
others. They may alternatively just prefer to live in the moment, taking each day as it
comes and not seeking self-awareness.

Some forms of esoteric self-development seek to rid oneself of concerns
about the self in order to achieve a higher state of being. They may
deliberately enter states of non-thinking and revel in such intuitive paradoxes
as knowing through not knowing.

So what?

Like all good models, the Johari Window is quick and intuitive to understand
and can easily be used to create 'aha's. This makes it useful for facilitators,
therapists and consultants.

You can help people to push the boundaries to become more open and public (if
this serves their interests) by encouraging them to share more and to seek
honest feedback from others.

You can also discover their Blind Selves (perhaps by observing them or
talking about them with others) and then use this information in negotiations or
when you want to persuade them.